St. Louis Rams Blog

St. Louis Rams Blog by Stlvinnie

Monday, August 31, 2009

St. Louis Rams vs. Cincinnati Bengals Highlights

St. Louis Rams @ Cincinnati Bengals highlights from Friday night. Included are two touchdowns by Samkon Gado. James Laurinaitis with a huge fumble recovery. James Butler's fumble recovery and taking it to the house touchdown run. Quincy Butler follows that up with an interception and nice return. Finally a game clinching sack and strip by Eric Moore and recovery by backup defensive end C.J. Ah You.

Thursday, August 27, 2009

St. Louis Rams Cage In The Bengals 24-21

The Cincinnati Bengals had no where to run or hide as the Butler's did it Thursday night as the St. Louis Rams beat the Cincinnati Bengals 24-21 to go to 2-1 in the preseason. James Butler and Quincy Butler combined for 6 tackles, 1 assist, 1 sack, 1 fumble recovery returned for a TD, and 1 interception. The Rams who forced 4 turnovers on the night jumped out to an early 21-7 lead after James Butler recovered a fumble and returned it 73 yards for a score. The Rams defense should benefit greatly from having winners like coach Steve Spagnuolo and James Butler. The most impressive part of the night was the swarming, gang tackling, ball hawking defense. The Rams were constantly making tackles as a group and trying to strip the ball. The Rams in addition also recorded 6 sacks by 6 different players. on a night when the offense only had 243 total yards the defense came through in a big way.Kyle Boller had a nice night playing one series into he 3rd Quarter. Boller went 114 of 20 for 96 yards with TD, along with 16 yards rushing. I like the way he plays, his attitude, and apparent leadership. Berlin and Null only threw 9 passes in the second half and did not show much. Samkon Gado was again the star of the running backs. With Steven Jackson only in the game for 7 plays on offense Gado was quickly in and given a chance to shine. Gado did not disappoint as he totaled 35 total yards and two touchdowns. Laurent Robinson again led the receiving core in catches and yardage.On this night it was the defense that stole the show. For the Rams to be successful in 2009 they will have to create turnovers and cash them in. On this night they were able to do just that. Steve Spagnuolo came from the Eagles and Giants both teams that have had a history of hard hitting D that likes to get after the QB and cause turnovers. I would love to see the Rams put together a team that can play that way on defense.The Rams are now 2-1 in the preseason and will finish their schedule next Thursday night at the Edward Jones Dome against the Kansas City Chiefs. Hopefully some more starters like Bulger, Avery, Little, Carriker, etc. will be healthy for that one. I would like to see Marc Bulger get some work in prior to the road opener at Seattle on September 13th.

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Edward Jones Dome Upgrades and Renovations

Last week at the Rams Falcons game I was able to check out the latest Edward Jones Dome upgrades. I was pretty impressed for the most part. The picture shown is of the new larger LED video board on the North side of the stadium, which is just sick in size and quality, a nice addition. This is the second largest video board in the league. It is a shame that only about 60% of the stadium can view it however. The new video board on the other side is actually much smaller than the board that was there before but with the TV quality you will not miss the old one. The new Rams Club & Premium Club areas are beautiful and well done. From the lower area you can actually see through to the escalators and this will allow actual daylight to creep into the dome. The section numbers around the top of the dome are now on a white background making it seem a little brighter. My favorite addition is the Bud Light Party Zone which has tons of televisions and a fabulous view of the field from right behind the South end zone, you must check it out. The new PA announcer is way better than Jim Holder, and you can actually understand everything he says. There are two small LED boards on the East and West sides that show the current score, down, distance, yard line, and time outs remaining. I took a poll of fans in the upper section and only about half could read the boards from their location. These are two small and the Rams will have to do something about this. There are two rings of LED boards around the sides that also show many ads along with scores from around the league and fantasy stats! Another great addition however with the font choice and size I believe these may also be hard for some viewers to see. Well that is all I can remember at the moment, hopefully more than 30,000 fans will show up next week for the Governors’ Cup game against the Kansas City Chiefs to see the upgrades.

Tuesday, August 25, 2009

Donnie Avery Returns To Practice

Donnie Avery returned to practice today for the St. Louis Rams. This is great news because he returned way ahead of schedule and puts a legitimate threat on the field for the Rams. Hopefully Marc Bulger will return by opening day and the Rams can at least threaten to score. With this offense the Rams will need to spread the ball around so the more talent they can get on the field the better. I was not liking the looks of heading into the season opener with Laurent Robinson and Keenan Burton as our starting wide receivers, were you?

Monday, August 24, 2009

Leonard Little Injured In Practice

Leonard Little sprained his right knee in practice today, what more could go wrong? The injury does not appear to be too serious since Little came back to practice for a short while before the coaching staff shut him down. You never know with the St. Louis Rams, the little injuries always seem to linger or get worst. Just days ago Brooks Foster had a high ankle sprain that turned into needing surgery. Little who will turn 35 prior to mid-season has missed 11 of the Rams previous 32 games. If Little is out for any significant time Victor Adeyanju will fill in at left DE.

The Seattle Seahawks Land The Edge

The Seattle Seahawks signed Edgerrin James to a one-year $2 million dollar contract Monday. The Arizona Cardinals released James after their Super Bowl run and the drafting of Beanie Wells out of Ohio State. James who is 11th all-time on the rushing total list could be a huge pick up for the Seahawks. The Seahawks now have a stable of pretty good backs with Julius Jones and T.J. Duckett. While some Rams fans are excited about Kenneth Darby and Samkon Gado many teams in the NFL are now loaded with two or more quality backs. Again it appears this year the biggest concern with the Rams will be what happens if Steven Jackson goes down? The Rams simply need more talent on the field and on the bench to be able to compete.

Sunday, August 23, 2009

The Chase Is On

Chase Daniel looked great last night as the Washington Redskins beat the Pittsburgh Steelers 17-13 behind two touchdown passes from Chase. Chase entered the game in the 3rd Quarter ahead of incumbent Colt Brennan. Chase led two touchdown drives while going 6 of 8 for 58 yards and 2 TDs, along with a huge 22 yard scramble. Colt Brennan played the 4th quarter and threw a costly interception while going 3 of 5 for 42 yards. There is an article on the front of The Washington Times today and a nice Quote from Chase "In none of my dreams did I think I'd go out there and throw two touchdowns in my first NFL game." Chase is still a long shot to make the Redskins but last night could only help his cause. We wish him the best.

Saturday, August 22, 2009

Déjà Vu Falcons Beat Rams 20-13

The Rams finished the 2008 season with a 31-27 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. In that game Michael Turner gashed the Rams alive with 208 yards rushing on 25 carries and a TD. last night Turner once again torched the Rams again. Turner had 65 yards on only 7 carries, and a TD. The Falcons O-line again completely dominated the Rams defense. This is bad news since the season starts in 3 weeks. Will the Rams be able to compete more in 2009? The Rams require way more talent and speed to compete week in and week out. The Rams were 31st in points allowed last year. In addition they allowed 154 yards per game on the ground. The defense has to improve and that starts up front.

Atlanta Falcons @ St. Louis Rams Recap

1st Q - The Atlanta Falcons won the coin toss and started at their own 23 yard line. Without much resistance they went 77 yards and Michael Turner put them up 7-0 on a 1 yard run. After a 5 and out from the Rams Atlanta was back in control. This time the Falcons covered 70 yards in under 4 minutes and Matt Ryan capped the drive off with a 14 yard pass to an open Tony Gonzalez. Less then 12 minutes into the Rams preseason opener The Falcons were up 14-0 and had a commanding 147 to 13 yard advantage. After the first drive Samkon Gado came in for Steven Jackson. The Rams D was unable to stop the run and the corners were also beaten pretty bad in the quarter.2nd Q - Early in the 2nd Kyle Boller missed a wide open Laurent Robinson on what would have been an easy TD. Matt Ryan only played two series and was replaced by D.J. Shockley. James Laurinaitis made a great interception but the Rams could only move the ball one yard before kicking a Josh Brown FG. At half time the score was 14-3 Atlanta. Laurent Robinson was the Rams best player in the half. The Rams had 16 yards rushing after Jackson came out of the game and 11 of those were from Boller. Gado had nowhere to go against the run stuffing D of Atlanta which was handling the Rams O-line with ease.3rd Q - Larry Grant sacked D.J. Shockley and forced a fumble that was recovere by Hollis Thomas. Brock Berlin who took over for Kyle Boller hit Derek Stanley for a pretty 20 yard TD pass. The Rams were back in it, down only 14-10 early in the 3rd. Jason Smith who started at RT played 2 1/2 quarters in the game. This was nice to see but I am still not sure why he is not playing LT. The rest of the 3rd was pretty uneventful even though the Falcons did get a FG to go up 17-10 heading into the 4th.4th Q - Todd Johnson intercepted D.J. Shockley early in the 4th to put the Rams in a great position to tie the game Keith Null replaced Brock Berlin and led the Rams down to the Falcons 5 yard line. The Rams were unable to convert a 3rd and 1 and like most bad teams had to settle for a FG from inside the 10. Kenneth Darby was just stuffed on a run up the middle. The Rams have to find a way to improve in these situations. After not taking advantage the Falcons came right back and marched 6 yards to get their own FG to go up 20-13. The Rams had one more chance starting from their own 35. Keith Null led a nice drive down to the Falcons 12 yard line. Could the Rams win another preseason game? The Rams ran a draw play on 3rd and 5 that did not fool anyone and that set the stage for a 4th and 6 from the 13. Berlin looked and looked but nobody was open and he ended up getting picked on the play. A few plays earlier it looked like Klopfenstein could have caught the tying TD but he did not. Does anyone know why he is still on the Rams roster?

Thursday, August 20, 2009

What Could Have Been or Should Have Been?

With Alex Barron out Jason Smith will be the starting right tackle Friday night as the St. Louis Rams take on the Atlanta Falcons at the Edward Jones Dome. Since Jason was the second overall draft pick in the 2009 NFL draft it will be nice to see him with the starters. Unless you are the ultimate optimist you can see that this Rams roster is lacking depth and superstars. Superstars and depth are two things you can build through the NFL draft. For years the Rams have failed to draft great talent to fill the holes that have become many. Friday night you will get a look at what could have or should have been the Rams path. As the Rams famous core of Warner, Faulk, Holt, Bruce, & Pace have left, they were not replaced with quality players. Did the Rams wait too long to rebuild? Should the Rams have started from scratch the last few years by drafting what they thought would be a franchise QB? Friday you will get to see Matt Ryan who was selected 3rd overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. Ryan is already considered a top 10 QB in the league. The Rams could have drafted Matt Ryan but instead chose Chris Long. This year with Pace leaving and holes along the O-line the Rams chose Jason Smith who may have been a reach as the second pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. The Rams could have once again elected to go with a projected franchise QB in Mark Sanchez. In 2007 the Rams selected Adam Carriker as the 13th pick and moved him from DE to DT for what reason I do not know, he was a solid DE at Nebraska. In the same 2007 draft the Rams could have selected Brady Quinn. Two years ago the Rams front office elected to give Marc Bulger a $65 million dollar contract extension and in doing so selected the path we would head down. You may not remember but the Rams took Bulger from the Falcons practice squad back in 2000. Now the Falcons may once again have a QB the Rams need. Did the Rams choose the correct path to rebuilding?

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

Edward Jones Dome Renovations

As interested and excited as I am to see the St. Louis Rams take on the Atlanta Falcons Friday night at the Edward Jones Dome, I am also excited to see the $30 million dollars worth of renovations that took place over the summer. That's right $30 million dollars worth of our taxpayers money went towards renovation of the Edward Jones Dome. For those of you that want a better atmosphere hopefully these additions will help. There will be two new LED video boards twice as large as the old video board. The Rams have promised more scores, highlights and fantasy information during games. St. Louis's largest sports bar, the Bud Zone will also be open to check out before and after the game. There will also be a new Premium Club in addition to a renovated Rams Club which will feature tons of televisions. Some daylight from the outside is supposed to be able to peak through the clubs and into the stadium. This natural light with some new lighter paint in the stadium should brighten things up a bit. There will also be a new LED marquee in front of the stadium.

I pray to NOT hear the song Celebration, or see the black and white pixel dancing Elvis character. We also hope the new improved sound system is unable to play commercials at the same time as highlights or announcements. See you there!

Tuesday, August 18, 2009

Alex Barron To Have MRI On His Knee

What Next? Steve Spagnuolo and the St. Louis Rams have announced that Alex Barron will have an MRI on his knee. With the Rams already down their starting QB in Marc Bulger, and starting WR Donnie Avery, they really can't afford to lose any more players. The even more disturbing part of this story is the Rams say Barron has had swelling in his knee all during camp. The only bright spot for the moment is that Jason Smith the Rams first round draft choice will work with the first team at right tackle.

Monday, August 17, 2009

Marc Bulger Injured In Practice

Marc Bulger was injured in practice today while taking a snap from center, suffering a non-displaced pinkie fracture. Bulger is expected to miss the next two preseason games against the Atlanta Falcons and Cincinnati Bengals. In his absence Kyle Boller will be the new #1 in the huddle. This is bad news for Marc Bulger who needs to learn the west cost offense and get his timing down with a bunch of new receivers as well. For a QB that has lost 23 of his last 27 starts Marc is in need of a break and I do not think this is the break he was looking for

Sunday, August 16, 2009

Rams Receiving Cupboard Is Bare

The St. Louis Rams who are already short on quality receivers had two more go down during their preseason game against the New York Jets on Friday night. Donnie Avery who is already out 4-6 weeks with a fracture in his foot will now be joined by Brooks Foster who will be out 2-4 weeks with a sprained ankle and Tim Carter who will be out a week or two with a groin injury. It looks like more and more pressure will be on Steven Jackson to move this offense. With those 3 down who will step up? The Rams will take a long look at Laurent Robinson, Keenan Burton, Nate Jones, Derek Stanley & Ronald Curry.

St. Louis Rams vs. Jets Highlights

St. Louis Rams @ New York Jets highlights from Friday night. Included a sack from Leonard Little during the first Jets drive. A nice 13 yard run from Steven Jackson in the first quarter. The play of the game, Samkon Gado's 77 yard touchdown run. A nice TD pass from Keith Null to Sean Walker. Rams win 23-20.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Live Rams GameDay Blog

1st Q - Jets started the game with the ball. On the first series Leonard Little sacked Kellen Clement and forces a fumble which James Hall recovered. Josh Brown booted a 48 yard FG after the Rams failed to move the ball. A few bad plays by the Rams D on the second drive alowed the Jets to tie the game at 3. Rams second drive was stalled again with another sack the second of the quarter. Justin King gets burned on a bomb from sanchez. Quarter ends tied at 3.2nd Q - Rams start second quarter ith mostly backups. Jets drove 93 yards with Sanchez at the helm to take a 10-3 lead. Drive was helped a lot by Justin King getting burned and David Roach missing a tackle on 3rd and long. Offensive starters except Steven Jackson start the third Rams drive. Bulger connected on a nice long pass to Laurent Robinson. Drive stalled again as Bulger was sacked for the third time, 10-6 Jets. Kyle Boller, Pittman, and Robinson led the Rams on a nice 12 play drive ending in a Josh Brown FG before halftime. Jets up 10-9 at halftime. 3rd Q - Rams started with the ball and Jason Smith and Kyle Boller. Samkon Gado ripped off a 77 yard TD run up the middle to put the Rams up 16-10.Shonn Greene rips off a long run and gets the Jets in scoring position to make it 16-13 half way through the quarter. Brock Berlin led the Rams on a fairly long drive that stalled at the Jets 39. Rams lead 16-13 after 3.4th Q - Tood Johnson is burned on a play fake, and Erik Ainge passes to David Clowney down the middle for 50 yard TD, as the Jets take the lead 20-16. After Brock Berlin was hurt on a rollout Keith Null took over and lead the Rams on a TD drive. Null hit Sean Walker for a 13 yard touchdown pass. Rams up 23-20 with 7:32 left in the game. Eric Moore and C.J. Ah You had some great plays in the 4th to stop a Jets late game drive. Rams win 23-20!!Player of the game Samkon Gado 6 carries for 93 yards and a TD, along with a catch for 5 yards.

Rams @ Jets What We Are Watching

The number one thing we are looking for tonight is watching the kids. When will Jason Smith come into the game as right tackle? Will he hold his own? Will James Laurinaitis fit right in at MLB between Chris Draft and Will Witherspoon? It is time for the Rams to find a diamond in the rough so I would love to see Foster Brooks WR out of North Carolina become the next Torry Holt.

The O-line. The big uglies are the key to every football team. The Rams currently have a large quantity but do they have a large amount of quality. Also the starting 5 heading into the season have never played together before so they need to jell.

Marc Bulger the enigma. Can he play and does he want to play? At times it is hard to tell. I want to see emotion, leadership, toughness in the pocket, and the ability to throw a football 55+ yards. He needs all of these qualities not just one or two. I would also like to see him play more than a quarter.

Watching S-Jack (Steven Jackson) run. Steven Jackson is the heart and sole and leader of this team without a doubt. Sure we don't want to see him get hurt so why play him? Well because he can get hurt in practice or the weight room, so let's get him game day ready. How great would it be to see him run behind Jason Smith after a pancake block and head down the sidelines for a long TD run. I want to see it!

Last but not least we need some wide receivers. Who will step up and separate themselves from the others? With Donnie Avery out 4-6 weeks with a fracture in his foot others will get a long look. I want to see Keenan Burton step up and Foster Brooks show us what he's got. Everyone was a rookie once, there is no reason players on this roster can't become the next great players!

The Philadelphia Eagles Adopt Michael Vick

ESPN has reported the Philadelphia Eagles have signed Michael Vick to a two year contract. Your thoughts? Would you want him on the St. Louis Rams. Vick could be a wildcat QB and spell Bulger and Jackson a little and give the Rams some much needed team speed. The Eagles already with McNabb and Westbrook, along with three of the fastest receivers in the league with Jackson, Curtis, and Maclin are now LOADED on offense. They may have offensive line issues and on D they are very thin at linebacker but they are going to put some points on the board. I personally would not want Michael Vick on the Rams but as a football organization and a business would the Rams be better with him?

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Jim Thomas Talks About The Rams on ESPN 101

Jim Thomas was on ESPN 101 this afternoon talking to Bernie Miklasz about the St. Louis Rams. I will give you a brief overview of what Thomas had to say. The Rams went to Lambert airport a little after noon to take their charter flight to New York. Jim said Steve Spagnuolo is organized, has a presence about him and exudes confidence. Spagnuolo can play a big room better than Scott Linehan. This means when he walks in the room he is respected and the players are playing attention. Jim alluded to the fact the Rams never seemed to really do that for Linehan. The Rams starters should play one quarter give or take a couple plays depending on how long teams keep the ball. Adam Goldberg will start the game as the starting right tackle. Jason Smith will then come in with the second team Mark Setterstrom, Roy Schuening, John Greco, and Phil Trautwein. Thomas says that Jason Smith is not ready to start an NFL game yet. Thomas and Miklasz believe the Rams should play Jason Smith as much as possible during the preseason to get as much work in as possible. We look forward to watching the Rams tomorrow night on Fox 2.

Kurt Warner Makes New York Times Best Seller List

We all know Kurt Warner is great on and off the field. Now Kurt is climbing his way up the New York Times Best Seller list. Kurt and Brenda Warner's book First Things First: The Rules of Being a Warner is #6 on Amazon.com in the Football Biographies & Memoirs section. This is a great book for anyone. There are more stories about raising children then raising a championship flag but that is Kurt. It is all about family. This is a book about life lessons. If you liked Quiet Strength: The Principles, Practices, and Priorities of a Winning Life by Tony Dungy you will love this book.

St. Louis Rams 31st In Power Rankings

Gregg Rosenthal from RotoWorld posted an article on ProFootballTalk.com as part of a preseason power ranking segment they are doing. The St. Louis Rams are currently in the 31st position. My favorite quote is "Jackson will have to shine because the passing game is a mess". I can't disagree with that. I am really a little shocked that the Rams are not making it more of a competition between Marc Bulger and Kyle Boller in camp. They also point out the Rams may have the weakest receiving core in the league. I can't really disagree with that either, the Rams are rebuilding almost from scratch. After a pretty somber article Gregg does predict the Rams will go 5-11. Right now I hope for better but lets face it 5-11 would not be that bad or that big of a surprise. Your thoughts?

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

St. Louis Blues Tickets Go On Sale This Saturday!

I know everyone is excited about the St. Louis Rams playing a Preseason game Friday night against the New York Jets, but don't look now hockey season is also right around the corner. That's right St. Louis Blues fans, Blues single game tickets go on sale this Saturday. You can buy tickets Saturday from 10 a.m. to noon at the Scottrade Center Box Office. If you are unable to make it down there you can also purchase tickets from the link below. Preseason tickets starting as low as $3.St. Louis Blues Tickets

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

St. Louis Rams Lose Donnie Avery To Injury

Donnie Avery suffered a stress fracture in his left foot during the St. Louis Rams scrimmage at Lindenwood University on Friday night. This is not good news for the Rams receiving core which is already without stars and depth. Everyone know the numbers, the remaining Rams receivers on the roster combined caught 43 passes for 524 yards and four touchdowns last season. Who will step up? Veterans Ronald Curry and Tim Carter were picked up recently but are they the answer with Avery out until possibly the home opener against the Green Bay Packers.

Well I am here to tell you that the sky is not falling...yet. With coach Steve Spagnuolo in town I have a renewed sense of hope and optimism. So with that in mind I am going to take another sip of kool-aid and give you some facts, and reason for hope. First off the season is 16 games long so if we can get Avery back by week 3 at the latest that will soften the blow. Spagnuolo has been around a lot of success with the Eagles and Giants. Three of the top 10 passing offenses last year did not have a 1000 yard receiver. The Eagles typically will pass for around 4000 yards by just spreading the ball around. The Giants also spread the ball around. The Rams look toward this philosophy in 2009. I believe the tight ends and backs will catch many more balls in 2009. You may know the New Orleans Saints led the league in passing, but did you know their leading receiver was undrafted Lance Moore who had only 928 yards receiving. Likewise the Philadelphia Eagles were led by rookie DeSean Jackson with 912 yards. The New York Giants made the playoffs with no receiver topping 600 yards. So hang in there and remember even Torry Holt and Isaac Bruce were rookies once.

Saturday, August 8, 2009

St. Louis Rams Scrimmage Notes

It was a beautiful night for the St. Louis Rams scrimmage at Lindenwood University. As we turned into the campus we were a little shocked at the amount of cars in the parking lots. As you get closer you get a overlooking view of Harlen C Hunter Stadium which sits down below street level. The Stadium holds about 6000 and the estimated attendance was 7000, which included many people standing up around the fence and many more up on the grassy hill between the field and seats.

After the team warm-up all of the players gathered at the south side of the field near midfield. The Rams offensive players would wear white and the defense was in blue. The four QB's on the roster Bulger, Boller, Berlin, and Null all wore red jerseys, as in "do not touch". The scrimmage was played at about 3/4 speed, and a lot of plays ended without an actual tackle.

The scrimmage started with the Rams first team offense against the second team defense. The offense gets to keep moving down the field if they get first downs, if not they move the ball to a new location at start over. On the second drive Marc Bulger was picked off by Quincy Butler. Marc was picked off again later in the scrimmage and also had another near pic. The scrimmage also included a set of referees. Alex Barron was called for a false start early which caused the crowd to kind of throw out a laugh or two.

The Second Team offense then came out to try their luck against the Rams first string defense. Jason Smith was the right tackle with the second unit while Adam Goldberg was the right tackle on the first unit. Smith got some action in against Leonard Little during the scrimmage which was nice to see. I have yet to see anyone move Smith around. He seems like the real deal. Kyle Boller looked good in the amount of time he had on the field.

The rest of the evening was spent with the Rams changing offensive and defensive lineups. The defense dominated most of the night. Since Spagnuolo is a defensive coach it is nice that the D looked sharp. After several attempts to score the Rams then went to situational drills. They practice different 2nd, 3rd, and 4th down plays. The Rams also practice from the goal line and red zone areas.Once the scrimmage concluded the players signed autographs for about 15 minutes. The offensive players went to the North side of the field and the defense went to the South side. Players were very nice as they signed, took pictures and talked to that fans. Most would also thank you for coming out to watch them. Overall the Rams put on a very nice night for the fans and I applaud and thank them.

St. Louis sports media coverage is always interesting. Frank Cusumano on News Channel 5 said "Bulger got off to a rocky start but he threw letter perfect lasers most of the night, I mean he looked like the Marc Bulger of three years ago". Really Frank? Marc was picked twice and anyone who has ever seen Marc in practice knows he is outstanding and accurate in that situation. Can he get back to playing this way when there are 11 men actually trying to kill him on the field? Martin Kilcoyne on Fox 2 was much more accurate in his description of the scrimmage, and also says that Marc had two picks. Interesting that neither channel said anything about the play of Jason Smith the Rams first round draft pick in the 2009 NFL Draft.

My overall thoughts on the scrimmage were, I was very impressed with the pace and organization of the scrimmage. Brock Berlin did not help his chances. With Spagnuolo drafting Keith Null it will be hard for Berlin to stick. He did not look good on this night. Jason Smith and James Laurinaitis both looked good. We have a ton of offensive lineman and I am looking forward to watching the starting unit progress. Adam Carriker and safety Eric Bassey left the field on crutches. We will try to find out more on their injuries.

Remember Fox 2 will broadcast the Rams preseason opener August 14 at the New York Jets.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

St. Louis Rams Scrimmage at Lindenwood

St. Louis Rams will have a FREE scrimmage Friday night August 7 at 6:30 p.m. at Lindenwood University. The Rams say the scrimmage will last about two hours. This should be a little safer than the previous scrimmage with the Tennessee Titans. Parking will also be free and the suddenly fan friendly Rams have also stated that players will also stay to sign autographs after the scrimmage. This is a great chance to see the new squad, and the new coaching staff in game type situations. I look forward to checking it out. See all you Rams fans there!

St. Louis Rams Training Camp August 6th

I was lucky enough to attend the St. Louis Rams, Earth City Day today at the Russell Training Center in Earth City. I was part of the VIP crowd of Earth City company employees that were invited. The highlight was getting my picture taken with Jason Smith #77, the Rams 1st round draft pick in the 2009 NFL Draft. Jason was kind enough that after a 135 minute practice, and a short autograph session, to actually stop while carrying loads of equipment to sign more autographs and to take some photos with the fans. See all of our training camp photos in our photos section.

Follow our Stlouisramfan Tweets @Stlvinnie

That's right you now can follow our St. Louis Rams thoughts on Twitter @Stlvinnie. This will allow us to bring you quick St. Louis Rams news without having to edit and publish a web page to do so. This will allow us to bring you the latest rams news faster than ever before.Go Rams!!!!

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Is Glenn Dorsey Too Fat?

The Kansas City Star has reported Defensive lineman Glenn Dorsey is the only starter still missing from practice because of failure to pass the conditioning test. Kent Babb also said "Whether it's about conditioning or humiliation, Dorsey remains in the doghouse". Last year after signing a 5-year, $51 million dollar deal Glenn Dorsey said "I promise I'll work hard," while towering over Kansas City Chiefs owner Clark Hunt. Dorsey went on to record 46 tackles and 1 sack in 16 games in 2008. So looking back one year later on our 1st round selection of Chris Long, a great character player with a high motor, we still believe the St. Louis Rams made the right selection.

Chris Mortensen visits Rams Training Camp

Chris Mortensen from ESPN visited the St. Louis Rams Training Camp this week, as part of his bus tour to NFL training camps. Follow the link below to watch the full video that was played on ESPN. Steve Spagnuolo once again comes across as a leader and as a man with a plan. I love the fact that all reports I have received have talked about how physical training camp has been. Say goodbye to the Scott Linehan playground, and the Jim Haslett lunatic fringe. For the first time in a few years I am truly excited about the changes the Rams have made. People need to recognize what a great skill set Spagnuolo picked up from Andy Reid and Tom Coughlin, and how the Philadelphia Eagles and New York Giants organizations stay competitive year after year.

Madden 10 "Battle of the Gridiron" Tournament

Hey all you Madden Football fans GameStop has put together a "Battle of the Gridiron" Tournament starting with round 1 on Saturday, August 22, 2009. More than 2,900 GameStop locations will be part of the tournament. Please stop by your local GameStop if you are interested. The grand prize winner will receive $5,000!For additional tournament details click HERE.